Publication year
2015
Citation Title
Military service absences and family members' mental health: A timeline followback assessment
Journal Name
Journal of Family Psychology
Journal Volume
29
Issue Number
4
Page Numbers
642-648
DOI
10.1037/fam0000102
Summary
Deployment can be a time of increased stress for Service members' families. In this study, researchers investigated how the number of Service member deployments, the cumulative length of those deployments, and the number of important family events missed were associated with spouse and child outcomes. Results indicated that deployment characteristics and communication during deployment were related to youth and spouse anxiety and depression.
Key Findings
Youth of Service members who missed more important family events had increased symptoms of depression.
Wives of Service members who spent more time deployed experienced more symptoms of anxiety and depression.
High levels of contact between youth and their deployed parent lessened the relationship between the amount of time the Service member was deployed and symptoms of anxiety.
Implications for Program Leaders
Present workshops to help families develop a possible plan for communication during deployment
Offer support groups for youth and spouses of deployed Service members so that they can develop peer support around their experiences
Provide education about ways to include a deployed family member in important family events to the extent possible given the realities of deployment
Implications for Policy Makers
Encourage programs to support families while a parent is deployed, especially around important family events that the Service member may be missing
Endorse training for those who work with military youth regarding the impacts of parental deployment
Promote military family engagement with programming that fosters positive family communication
Methods
Participants were recruited through advertisements in various military-related media, announcements from groups supporting military families, and flyers posted in on-base hospitals and clinics.
Youth and their mothers recruited for the study participated in an interview in which they wrote important family events, including Service member deployments, on calendars of the past five years.
The participants also completed self-report measures of depression, anxiety, and amount of contact while Service member was deployed.
Participants
Study participants included 70 mothers and their adolescents from families in which the father or stepfather was an Active Duty Service member. Youth participants were 54% female with an average age of 16 years old (SD = 1.2 years). Mothers’ average age was 40 years old (SD=4.8 years).
About a third (31%) of participants identified as Hispanic with regards to ethnicity. Regarding race, the participants identified as White (64%), Black (6%), American Indian or Alaska Native (4%), Asian (3%) Pacific Islander (2%), and multiracial or other (21%).
Service members served in the Marines (53%), Navy (34%), Air Force (8%), Army (3%), or Coast Guard (2%).
Limitations
Researchers assessed frequency of contact during deployment with one general question about all deployments, which does not take into account how contact may vary across different deployments.
All participants were spouses and youth of male Service members; the relationships among these variables may differ when it is a female Service member who is deployed.
The youth participants were adolescents and the Service members were midgrade enlisted personnel or higher, so results cannot be extended to younger children or junior enlisted personnel.
Avenues for Future Research
Measure various types of communication with Service members during different deployments in order to get a better understanding of communication’s possible protective qualities
Include younger children of Service members to study their experiences of deployment and communication
Investigate the experience of children and spouses of female Service members during deployment
Focus
Multiple Branches
Target Population
Population Focus
Military Branch
Military Component
Abstract
Although military service, and particularly absence due to deployment, has been linked to risk for depression and anxiety among some spouses and children of active duty service members, there is limited research to explain the heterogeneity in family members’ reactions to military service stressors. The current investigation introduces the Timeline Followback Military Family Interview (TFMFI) as a clinically useful strategy to collect detailed time-linked information about the service member’s absences. Two dimensions of parent absenceÑthe extent to which absences coincide with important family events and cumulative time absentÑwere tested as potential risks to family members’ mental health. Data from 70 mother_adolescent pairs revealed that the number of important family events missed by the service member was linked to elevated youth symptoms of depression, even when accounting for the number of deployments and cumulative duration of the service member’s absence. However, youth who reported more frequent contact with the service member during absences were buffered from the effects of extensive absence. Mothers’ symptoms were associated with the cumulative duration of the service members’ time away, but not with family events missed by the service member. These results identify circumstances that increase the risk for mental health symptoms associated with military family life. The TFMFI provides an interview-based strategy for clinicians wishing to understand military family members’ lived experience during periods of service-member absence
Abstract Document
PRTW Document
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